Signs are everywhere, and they provide a means for displaying information useful in an infinite variety of situations. Many environments in which signs are used, however, are inhospitable thus requiring periodic sign maintenance or total replacement for optimal effectiveness. In other instances, the changing nature of the subjects or objects to which the sign indicia applies necessitates periodic removal of misinformational signs and replacement with signs bearing the appropriate information. This may involve the dismantling of supports and enclosures which requires tools and extended labor, or require total replacement of an integral sign structure and the discarding of the old sign. Furthermore, the placement and position of signs significantly affects both the attractiveness of the sign and the willingness of viewers to regard the messages conveyed by the sign.
One particular sign environment requiring consideration of all of the above mentioned factors is that of a botanical garden. The majority of signs in a botanical garden will bear indicia about plants. Since the great majority of plants are rooted, their nature requires observers to look in a downward direction in order to view parts, if not all, of them. Thus, the height and orientation of the indicia bearing surface of the sign will influence an observer's willingness to regard the indicia along with the actual subject matter thereof. Of course, the attention to optimal height and orientation of signs is not limited to the case of downward viewing.
A botanical garden is also an environment infiltrated with abundant amounts of organic matter and other growing adjuncts, such as vermiculite, lime, fertilizers, and a variety of oil based herbicides, insecticides, and the like, which make for a dirty and greasy environment that is detrimental to the signs located therein.
Finally, due to the cyclic nature of plants, botanical displays are constantly changing, requiring corresponding sign replacement and storage of signs not in use. This can be environmentally taxing and require excessive space, respectively.
Accordingly, there is a need for an interchangeable sign system for use in environments conducive to sign deterioration, and having changing subject applications and particular viewing requirements, such as are typically found in botanical gardens, for example, that permits easy removal of the informational section of the sign and likewise easy replacement without requiring handling of unwieldy stake portions of varying lengths, and also that promotes environmental conservation and savings in cost and storage space.